Rochester to build $130 million Golisano Performing Arts Center

The City of Rochester on Friday announced the construction of a new $130 million performing arts center on the site of the former Midtown Plaza mall.

The project is partially funded by a $25 million investment from Rochester-born billionaire and former Buffalo Sabres owner B. Thomas Golisano. In his honor, it will be named the Golisano Performing Arts Center.

The center, a joint project of the Rochester Broadway Theatre League and developer Morgan Communities, will feature a 3,000-seat theater as well as 150 rental units, parking and space for retail shops, according to a release from the city.

In a statement, Rochester Mayor Lovely A. Warren called the city's selection of the project "a victory for our city in every way." Officials estimate new development will create 610 construction jobs and 166 permanent full-time jobs.

"This project will be an anchor for new development and represents continued progress for our city and, most importantly, its residents," Warren said in the statement. "A vibrant Downtown is critical for the overall health of a city and this project will help make all of our neighborhoods more vibrant in the process."

Officials from the Rochester Broadway Theatre League, the city's equivalent to Shea's Performing Arts Center, said in a statement that increased ticket revenue and ancillary activity at the center will produce an estimated economic impact of $55.5 million a year.